United States Army Medical Unit

Defunct US army medical research unit

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The United States Army Medical Unit (1956–1969) – a now defunct medical research unit for biodefense – was at Fort Detrick, Maryland, US. In contrast to the U.S. Army Biological Warfare Laboratories (1943–1969), also at Fort Detrick, the USAMU's mission was purely to develop defensive measures against bio-agents, as opposed to weapons development. The USAMU was the predecessor to today's USAMRIID.

History

The U.S. Army Medical Unit (USAMU or AMU) was originally established on 20 June 1956 as a separate Class II activity under the jurisdiction of Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC). The first USAMU commander was Col. William D. Tigertt. One of the USAMU's first responsibilities was to oversee all aspects of Project CD-22, the exposure of volunteers to aerosols containing a highly pathogenic strain of Coxiella burnetii, the causal agent of Q fever. One pre-existing research project, Operation Whitecoat (1954–1973), outlasted the USAMU. (It was a medical research program using volunteer enlisted personnel – all conscientious objectors.) General Order 9, dated 29 September 1958, Office of The Surgeon General, assigned the USAMU to Headquarters, U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command (USAMRDC). In 1961, Col. Dan Crozier assumed command of the USAMU. Modern principles of biosafety and biocontainment were pioneered at Fort Detrick throughout the 1960s by a number of scientists led by Arnold G. Wedum. General Order No. 6, dated 27 January 1969, Office of The Surgeon General, redesignated the USAMU as the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) still assigned to USAMRDC.

DHS	DHS Chemical and Biological Defense Division DHS Office of Health Affairs (National Biosurvelliance Integration Center, BioWatch) National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility National Bioforensic Analysis Center
DNI	National Counterproliferation Center (Advisory Committee on Bioterrorism)
DHHS	Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Division of Select Agents and Toxins (CDC) National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity
DoD	Assistant SECDEF for NCB Defense Programs Defense Threat Reduction Agency Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System Joint Program Executive Office of Chemical and Biological Defense (JPEO-CBD) National Center for Medical Intelligence

Federal
research

Trans- departmental	National Interagency Confederation for Biological Research (National Interagency Biodefense Campus, Fort Detrick) Integrated National Biodefense Medical Countermeasures Portfolio (DHHS/DoD)
Military	U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Edgewood Chemical Biological Center Dugway Proving Ground
Civilian	Galveston National Laboratory (UTMB/NIAID) Integrated Research Facility (HHS/NIAID) Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (HHS) Homeland Security Research Program (EPA/DHS) Plum Island Animal Disease Center (USDA) Foreign Disease Weed Science Research Unit (USDA)

Response

Local	Local Health Departments
State	State Health Departments Nebraska Biocontainment Patient Care Unit
Federal	National Medical Response Team/National Pharmacy Response Team (NDMS, HHS) Chemical Biological Incident Response Force (USMC) Epidemic Intelligence Service (CDC) Aeromedical Biological Containment System (CDC) Bioterror Rapid Response and Advanced Technology Laboratory (CDC)

Non-
governmental

Academic centers
and think tanks

Government
contractors

Programs
and projects

Threat reduction	Nunn–Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program, implemented the Defense Threat Reduction Agency and Biological Threat Reduction (DoD) plus Project Bacchus Project Clear Vision Project Jefferson
Biosurveillance	National Biosurveillance Strategy Laboratory Response Network (CDC) BioWatch (EPA, CDC) Global Bio-Surveillance Technology Initiative (GBTI), Bio-Surveillance Management Office (BMO) (part of JPEO-CBD) ESSENCE (DoD) RODS (Civilian)
Biosecurity/Biosurety	Select Agent Program (CDC) Personnel Reliability Program (DoD)
Medical intelligence	National Intelligence Assessments on Infectious Diseases
Disaster response	National Response Framework of the National Strategy for Homeland Security (DHS; including NIMS and ICS) National Disaster Medical System (DHHS) Strategic National Stockpile (CDC, DHS)

Technology
and equipment

Protection	MOPP NBC suit Respirators
Detection	Cell CANARY Biological Materials MASINT Autonomous Pathogen Detection System Joint Biological Agent Identification and Diagnostic System (JBAIDS)
Biocontainment	Biosafety level Biosafety cabinet Positive pressure personnel suit

Law

Treaties

Geneva Protocol (1925, 1975)
Statement on Chemical and Biological Defense Policies and Programs (1969)
Biological Weapons Convention (1972)

Legislation

International
representation

History

Past biological incidents	1984 Rajneeshee bioterror attack 1989 California medfly attack 2001 anthrax attacks Wood Green ricin plot (2002) 2003 ricin letters 2013 ricin letters
Defunct organizations and programs	United States Army Medical Unit United States biological weapons program Sunshine Project Aeromedical Isolation Team (DoD)

Misplaced Pages

United States Army Medical Unit

History

See also